COLUMBUS, Ohio – On January 7th, Capital University President, Dr. Jared Tice, and Director of Athletics and Recreation, Dr. Darrell Bailey Sr. jointly announced the school's addition of Esports. Esports, short for electronic sports, will be a coed program and will serve as the 23rd varsity sport at Capital University. The program is slated to begin competition in the fall of 2026. 
 
"Collegiate esports represents a powerful intersection of student opportunity, technology, and place," stated Dr. Tice. "At Capital University, our goal is to build a national championship-caliber arena and casting center that draws on the energy, expertise, and momentum of Columbus - positioning our students and our institution at the center of one of the fastest-growing sectors in higher education and sport."
 
"We are excited to add Esports as another athletic offering for our students," commented Dr. Bailey. "By introducing this type of program, it provides a new opportunity for students while also opening doors for students who might not have participated in other campus activities. I believe this gives them a way to connect, compete, and represent Capital University with pride!"
 
Esports is a well-recognized sport at the collegiate level with more than 200 colleges and universities across the U.S. and Canada sponsoring varsity programs. These schools compete for championships across a variety of different games such as Super Smash Bros, Valorant, Rocket League, Overwatch, and Call of Duty among others. While the Ohio Athletic Conference does not sponsor Esports at the conference level, Capital will now add their name to the nearly full list of OAC schools sponsoring Esports as either a varsity or club sport. 
 
The Capital University Esports team will be governed by the athletic department as a varsity sport, while the team will compete and practice on campus in Blackmore Library. The university is continuing work in the development of this space to prepare for the program's inaugural season of competition. 
 
The addition of this program brings the total number of varsity athletic offerings to 23. This announcement continues to build on the recent growth of the Capital Athletics department as men's and women's bowling was added in the fall of 2024 and men's tennis was recently announced to return in the fall of 2026 as well. Additionally, the momentum in support of athletics at Capital is continuing on an upward trend as the university recently announced the creation of a Pep Band to begin in the fall of 2026.  
 
Prospective student-athletes interested in the Esports program may complete an intake questionnaire by clicking here. Additionally, prospects and supporters may follow the program's start-up by following the team on social media via Instagram and X at the handle @capu_esports.